Thousands of pro-democracy protesters forced their way past police and poured on to a main road in Hong Kong late on Sunday night, escalating their direct action campaign.

But within hours, officers using dogs and wielding batons and an apparently powerful pepper-based spray had forced demonstrators out of the road tunnel they had barricaded, chasing them into a nearby park in chaotic scenes close to government offices and the main protest zone in Admiralty.

There were injuries on both sides and multiple arrests amid the clashes, with police and protesters seemingly braced for a long and unpredictable confrontation.

Student organisations had urged supporters to step up the protests by surrounding government headquarters. Unable to reach them due to barricades and a heavy police presence, protesters broke through cordons into Tamar Park and Lung Wo Road, closing the four-lane east-west route.

“Yes, we are escalating. It is how civil disobedience works: if one action is not enough to get government attention we must fight harder,” said Kenci Wong, 24, who works in advertising.

“The police have been beating us so many times. But what we are asking for is right. The government hopes we will get tired but we are very determined.”

Demonstrators on the frontline wore helmets, masks and goggles, carrying plastic shields and the umbrellas that gave the pro-democracy movement its name. But some were left bloodied as officers tried to repel them… see more

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